Standard?

There are so many San Francisco characters. In some towns/cities/areas of the country you can pretty much expect a standard type. Not a Stepford Wife phenomena, but a mannerism of people. Growing up we commented Marin was filled with Marinites driving BMWs (also known of as basic Marin wheels), living in beautiful houses, and playing by many of the supposed tos in life (perfect job, perfect house, perfect family…from the outside). Marin had and has it’s handful of characters, but none deviate(d) from the Marin norm too much.

My old boss used to say that “a fish starts to stink at the head.” She learned this from years of working in a restaurant, but the same phrase rings true for an organization – a business or a residential area. Our Mayor doesn’t stink – not at all – but he’s definitely different.

Gavin Newsom, probably one of the youngest mayors around, is now admitting infidelity and recovering from alcohol abuse. Hopefully someday soon, though, he’ll be known for all the other things he’s done for SF – taking action around gay rights, homelessness, education, and more. OK, enough politics. On the drive home we encountered a character of a different sort. Many characters, actually, but one who stood out.

Driving off the 280 and up Taylor St. we came to a sudden stop – not from a light, stop sign, or slow in traffic, but from one of the many people who run across or just into the street seemingly chasing something (voices, cars, curb-side change…who knows). This stop was because a man dressed in what looked like a cloak crossed with a black trench-coat (a cross between Dracula and Tupac) was standing smack in the middle of the road staring. Just staring. I wonder if he’s thinking about the stories of San Francisco as I am, but through a different lens. If he is, I wonder what the characters in his story are like.